"team on each stage were added; the leading team was the team with the lowest total time. For the combativity award classification, a jury gave points after each stage to the cyclists they considered most combative. The cyclist with the most votes in all stages lead the classification. 2001 Tour de France The 2001 Tour de France was a multiple-stage bicycle race held from 7 to 29 July, and the 88th edition of the Tour de France. It has no overall winner—although American cyclist Lance Armstrong originally won the event, the United States Anti-Doping Agency announced in August 2012 that"
"had earlier referred to Armstrong as the ""cancer"" of cycling, Armstrong responded aggressively to the question, with the heated exchange being uploaded to popular video sharing sites. In June 2012, the US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) charged Armstrong with having used illicit performance-enhancing drugs, and in August they announced a lifetime ban from competition as well as the stripping of all titles since August 1998. On 22 October 2012, the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), the sport's governing body, endorsed USADA's verdict and confirmed both the lifetime ban and the stripping of titles. These included the Tour de France titles for the"
"of Armstrong on Trek. Trek responded in April 2008 by severing business ties with LeMond. At a press conference Armstrong gave September 2008 to announce his return to cycling, LeMond was on hand sitting in the front row, and publicly challenged Armstrong with questions about doping. Armstrong appeared angry and interrupted LeMond, telling him it was time to move on. On February 16, 2011, Armstrong announced his retirement from competitive cycling. At the time he was facing a US federal investigation into doping allegations. In June 2012, USADA charged Armstrong with having used illicit performance-enhancing drugs. On August 24, 2012,"
"statement to withdraw his fight against United States Anti-Doping Agency's (USADA) charges, on 24 August 2012, the USADA said it would ban Armstrong for life and stripped him of his record seven Tour de France titles. Later that day it was confirmed in a USADA statement that Armstrong was banned for life and would be disqualified from any and all competitive results obtained on and subsequent to 1 August 1998, including forfeiture of any medals, titles, winnings, finishes, points and prizes. On 22 October 2012, the Union Cycliste Internationale endorsed the USADA sanctions, and decided not to award victories to"
"it would not search for a new sponsor, but cease operations and disband at the end of the 2007 season. In October 2012 USADA released a report saying that the team had run ""the most sophisticated, professionalised and successful doping programme the sport has ever seen"". The report contained affidavits from eleven riders on the team including Frankie Andreu, Tyler Hamilton, George Hincapie, Floyd Landis, Levi Leipheimer, and others, describing their own usage of erythropoietin (EPO), blood transfusion, testosterone, and other banned practices during the Tour de France and other races. They also implicated seven-time Tour winner Armstrong. On October"
"national champion. He retired at the end of the 2009 season. In October 2012, USADA stripped Armstrong of all seven of his Tour titles and banned from all sports that follow the World Anti-Doping Code for life, effectively ending his competitive career. Simeoni was one of the key witnesses in USADA's case against Armstrong, and related how Armstrong threatened him during the 2004 Tour. In its ""reasoned decision"" announcing Armstrong's ban, USADA harshly criticized Armstrong's behavior during the incident, which it called a ""sad moment in cycling."" It found that Armstrong's decision to chase Simeoni down was ""dangerous and impetuous,"""
"on doping by the U.S. Postal Service cycling team, implicating, amongst others, Armstrong. The report contained affidavits from riders including Frankie Andreu, Tyler Hamilton, George Hincapie, Floyd Landis, Levi Leipheimer, and others describing widespread use of Erythropoietin (EPO), blood transfusion, testosterone, and other banned practices in several Tours. In October 2012 the UCI acted upon this report, formally stripping Armstrong of all titles since 1 August 1998, including all seven Tour victories, and announced that his Tour wins would not be reallocated to other riders. Cyclists who have died during the Tour de France: Another seven fatal accidents have occurred:"
"of all charges. The UCI and the World Anti-Doping Agency each referred the decision independently to the Court of Arbitration for Sport in March 2011, but Contador remained free to ride until their ruling was made. The hearing was delayed until after the 2011 Tour de France at Contador's request and then deferred to November 2011. On 6 February 2012, the CAS stripped Contador of the 2010 title, making Andy Schleck the winner. Armstrong was stripped of all his professional results from August 1998 to August 2012, including his seven Tour titles on 22 October 2012. Armstrong's finish in the"
"any proceedings had actually occurred. Four days after Sparks's decision, on August 24, 2012, USADA officially charged Armstrong with doping. Had it prevailed in arbitration, Armstrong would have been stripped of all of his results from August 1, 1998 onward—including all seven Tour de France wins. USADA also sought to ban Armstrong for life from any activity or competition whose federation followed the World Anti-Doping Code—which would have effectively banned him from competing in Olympic-level sports. Three days later, Armstrong, while publicly maintaining his innocence, decided to not officially challenge the USADA allegations. In a statement, he said that USADA"
"doping by USADA, a CNN article claimed that critics had struck out the ""V"" or wrote a ""W"" over the ""ST"" to make the wristband read ""LIE STRONG"" or ""LIVEWRONG"". In 2012, Lance Armstrong was banned for life and was stripped of his Tour de France victories after being found guilty of, and admitting to, doping during his professional cycling career. As a result, he resigned as chairman of the foundation in October of that year and from the foundation's board of directors in November. Prior to Armstrong's televised interview with Oprah Winfrey in which he admitted to doping, the"
"Subsequent to Armstrong's statement to withdraw his fight against United States Anti-Doping Agency's (USADA) charges, on 24 August 2012, the USADA said it would ban Armstrong for life and stripped him of his record seven Tour de France titles. Later that day it was confirmed in a USADA statement that Armstrong was banned for life and would be disqualified from any and all competitive results obtained on and subsequent to 1 August 1998, including forfeiture of any medals, titles, winnings, finishes, points and prizes. On 22 October 2012, the Union Cycliste Internationale endorsed the USADA sanctions, and decided not to"
"later told ""Bicycling"", ""The 1999 Tour was supposed to be the ""Tour of Renewal,"" but I was certain that doping had not disappeared."" He quit the tour without finishing after ""cracking"" mentally due to his treatment by the peloton, especially in stage 10. Subsequent to Armstrong's statement to withdraw his fight against United States Anti-Doping Agency's (USADA) charges, on 24 August 2012, the USADA said it would ban Armstrong for life and stripped him of his record seven Tour de France titles. Later that day it was confirmed in a USADA statement that Armstrong was banned for life and would"
"this Tour Franco Pellizotti was announced by the UCI as a rider of interest in their biological passport program. He was sidelined by his team, and did not race again in 2010. The case was not fully resolved until March 2011, at which time the Court of Arbitration for Sport ordered Pellizotti banned for two years, to pay a fine and court costs, and have all his 2009 results vacated. In October 2012, Lance Armstrong had all his results post 1998, including the 2009 Tour, voided by the UCI following the USADA investigation into systematic doping. On 10 July 2014,"
"the first time trial by one minute and 36 seconds. He and Alexander Vinokourov were both within very short distance from Armstrong. Subsequent to Armstrong's statement to withdraw his fight against United States Anti-Doping Agency's (USADA) charges, on 24 August 2012, the USADA said it would ban Armstrong for life and stripped him of his record seven Tour de France titles. Later that day it was confirmed in a USADA statement that Armstrong was banned for life and would be disqualified from any and all competitive results obtained on and subsequent to 1 August 1998, including forfeiture of any medals,"
"competitive cycling with the Astana team in January 2009, finishing third in the 2009 Tour de France later that year. Between 2010 and 2011, he raced with Team Radio Shack, the UCI ProTeam he helped found. He retired for a second time in 2011. Armstrong had been the subject of doping allegations ever since winning the 1999 Tour de France. In 2012, a United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) investigation concluded that Armstrong had used performance-enhancing drugs over the course of his career and named him as the ringleader of ""the most sophisticated, professionalized and successful doping program that sport has"
"the issue. On July 31, 2009, ""The New York Times"" featured an article on corporate spying in France, stating that, ""No evidence has surfaced to connect Mr. Landis or Dr. Baker to the hacking, and each has denied any involvement."" On September 20, 2007, Landis' doping accusation was upheld by an arbitration panel deciding between him and USADA and Landis was banned for two years. In response to this, International Cycling Union formally stripped him of his 2006 Tour de France title and second-place finisher Óscar Pereiro was officially declared the winner. The only previous Tour de France winner to"
"left his position at on 12 October 2012 in the wake of the publication of the United States Anti-Doping Agency's (USADA) decision into the investigation of Lance Armstrong. In April 2014, the USADA banned Bruyneel from any type of involvement in sanctioned competitions for 10 years. Subsequently in October 2018 this was made into a lifetime ban by the Court of Arbitration in Sport (CAS). Born in Izegem, Belgium, Bruyneel was a successful professional cyclist. Early wins included the 1990 Tour de l'Avenir, the 1991 Rund um den Henninger Turm, the 1992 Grand Prix des Nations and Coppa Placci, and"
"distinguish the organization from other organizations in the oncology community. As a result of Armstrong's confessed guilt, on May 28, 2013, Nike announced that it would cut ties with the foundation after a nine-year relationship. After the 2013 holiday season, Nike ceased production of its Livestrong line of products, honoring its contract with the organization which expired in 2014. Figures provided by the foundation to ESPN in October 2012 revealed that, despite Armstrong's acknowledgement that he doped, revenues were up 2.1 percent, to US$33.8 million, through September 30, 2012—according to ESPN, this total represented a 5.4 percent increase from 2011,"
"by USADA (United States Anti-Doping Agency), although he is not an American citizen. Allegations include the assumption that Bruyneel was part of a long-running doping conspiracy, including the use of banned methods to augment the performance of the cycling teams which he directed. As a result of the allegations, Bruyneel declined to appear at the 2012 Tour de France, where he had been expected to direct the RadioShack-Nissan team. While some accused in this case, such as Lance Armstrong and Michele Ferrari, did not seek to formally contest the charges via arbitration, Bruyneel asked for an arbitration hearing. In October"
"licensing LeMond cycles since the 1990s and the brand had become successful. Armstrong's business relationship with Trek had become very strong as well after his Tour victories. Armstrong reportedly said privately he could ""shut him up"" by contacting Trek, as documented in affidavits by Frankie and Betsy Andreu released in the 2012 USADA doping report. About a month later, in August 2001, LeMond issued an apology for his comment, calling Armstrong ""a great champion and I do not believe, in any way, that he has ever used any performance-enhancing substances. I believe his performances are the result of the same"
"yellow jersey at the Tour de France, after winning the prologue of that year's Tour. However, later admissions of drug use during that time caused him to be stripped of his stage win and the resulting yellow jersey. On October 10, 2012 – while a member of the squad – it was announced by USADA that he would be suspended for six months for admissions of doping during his time with the US Postal Cycling Team. Later that day, Zabriskie confirmed his acceptance of a six-month ban from September 1, 2012 ending on March 1, 2013 along with a stripping"
"22, 2012 the UCI upheld the USADA's recommendation to strip Armstrong of all results since August 1, 1998, and ban him from cycling for life. In February 2013, the US government joined Landis' False Claims Act lawsuit against Armstrong, alleging that Armstrong had defrauded the US Postal Service of sponsorship funds by violating cycling rules by using performance-enhancing drugs while riding for the team. On August 10, 2007, Tailwind Sports announced the end of the Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team. Tailwind officials stopped their search for a new title sponsor for the Discovery team, citing the current tumultuous conditions within"
"not"" true that he was doping in 2009–10, and that the last time he ""crossed the line"" was in 2005. In September 2013, he was asked by UCI's new president, Brian Cookson, to testify completely about his doping. Armstrong refused to testify until and unless he got a complete amnesty, which Cookson said is most unlikely to happen. After USADA's report, all of Armstrong's sponsors dropped him. He reportedly lost $75 million of sponsorship income in a day. On May 28, 2013, Nike announced that it would be cutting all ties to Livestrong. In 2010, one of Armstrong's former teammates,"
"to the professional peloton in 2014, with . On 10 July 2012, the first rest day of the 2012 Tour de France, Remi di Gregorio was arrested by French police on suspicion of doping. In April 2013, it was revealed that Di Gregorio could resume his career, since the products found in his possession at the Tour turned out to be vitamins. Prosecutors said the case was not formally closed. Di Gregorio maintained he has never doped and successfully sued for unfair dismissal. In April 2018, news broke that Di Gregorio had failed an in-competition doping test for darbepoetin (EPO)"
"the USADA announced that Armstrong had been issued a lifetime ban from competition, applicable to all sports which follow the World Anti-Doping Agency code. The USADA report concluded that Armstrong engaged in ""the most sophisticated, professionalized and successful doping program that sport has ever seen."" In addition, the USADA stripped Armstrong of his seven Tour de France titles. On October 22, 2012, the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), the sport's governing body, announced its decision to accept USADA's findings. Armstrong chose not to appeal the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. Despite having denied drug use throughout his career,"
"knows that they are solely responsible for anything that goes into their bodies. For Mr. Merritt to claim inadvertent use of a banned substance due to the ingestion of over-the-counter supplements brings shame to himself and his teammates. Thanks to his selfish actions, he has done damage to our efforts to fight the plague of performance-enhancing drugs in our sport,"" USA Track and Field CEO Doug Logan said in a press release. Late in 2011, however, his ban ended and he was cleared to compete in the 2012 Olympics. The product is manufactured by BIOTAB Nutraceuticals, Incorporated. It has been"
"the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) accused Armstrong of doping and trafficking of drugs, based on blood samples from 2009 and 2010. Armstrong was initially suspended and eventually banned from participating in sports sanctioned by WADA. He chose not to appeal the ban. Because of the suspension and subsequent ban, Armstrong was prohibited from racing Ironman branded events to due World Triathlon Corporation anti-doping policies. 2012 Ironman 70.3 World Championship The 2012 Ironman 70.3 World Championship was a triathlon competition held at Lake Las Vegas in Henderson, Nevada on September 9, 2012. The championship was sponsored by the United States"
"future generations that the 2nd, 3rd and 4th place riders would not be moved up to 1st, 2nd and 3rd. Subsequent to Armstrong's statement to withdraw his fight against United States Anti-Doping Agency's (USADA) charges, on 24 August 2012, the USADA said it would ban Armstrong for life and stripped him of his record seven Tour de France titles. Later that day it was confirmed in a USADA statement that Armstrong was banned for life and would be disqualified from any and all competitive results obtained on and subsequent to 1 August 1998, including forfeiture of any medals, titles, winnings,"
"for winning the Tour de France from 1999-2001. The suit was settled for an undisclosed sum one day before Armstrong was scheduled to give a deposition under oath. In written testimony for the suit, Armstrong admitted under oath that Ferrari had been one of four individuals who had supplied him with PEDs during his cycling career. Michele Ferrari Michele Ferrari (born 26 March 1953) is an Italian physician, cycling coach and author. On 10 July 2012, the United States Anti-Doping Agency issued Ferrari a lifetime sports ban for numerous anti-doping violations including possession, trafficking, administration and assisting doping. Ferrari was"
"providing Britain's first Tour de France winner. Yates spent three years as the team's lead Director Sportif and, in 2012, presided over Bradley Wiggins victories in Paris–Nice, Tour de Romandie, Critérium du Dauphiné, Tour de France and the Olympic Time Trial. However, his race support during the 2012 Tour de France was heavily criticised by Mark Cavendish who described Yates as ""cold, uninspiring and miserly in praise."" In October 2012, he left the employment of Team Sky and retired from cycling, with the ""Daily Telegraph"" reporting that Yates had been forced to quit after admitting involvement in doping, meaning he"
"the Tour organisation and team leaders decided to exclude all cyclists under investigation from joining the Tour. Vinokourov, fifth-placed in 2005, was not under investigation, but his team was reduced to five cyclists, below the minimal required amount of six, so he could also not compete. In February 2012, the Court of Arbitration for Sport found Ullrich guilty of being engaged in Fuentes' doping program, and decided that Ullrich's results since May 2005, including his results from the 2005 Tour de France, would be disqualified. Subsequent to Armstrong's statement to withdraw his fight against United States Anti-Doping Agency's (USADA) charges,"
"on 24 August 2012, the USADA said it would ban Armstrong for life and stripped him of his record seven Tour de France titles. Later that day it was confirmed in a USADA statement that Armstrong was banned for life and would be disqualified from any and all competitive results obtained on and subsequent to 1 August 1998, including forfeiture of any medals, titles, winnings, finishes, points and prizes. On 22 October 2012, the Union Cycliste Internationale endorsed the USADA sanctions, and decided not to award victories to any other rider or upgrade other placings in any of the affected"
"His other business interests have included restaurants, real estate, and consumer fitness equipment. LeMond is a vocal opponent of performance-enhancing drug use, and at times his commercial ventures have suffered for his anti-doping stance—as in 2001, when he first accused Lance Armstrong of doping and sparked a conflict that led eventually to the dissolution of his Lemond Bicycles brand in 2008, which was licensed by Armstrong's primary sponsor Trek Bicycles. As the lone American winner of cycling's most prestigious race, LeMond has not enjoyed the public stature that might be expected of such a figure, but he continues to campaign"